Upwardly Mobile Food Prices Likely

Agriculture officials warn that food prices will likely continue to rise this year.

As costs for food production go up so goes the price at the grocery story.  U.S Agriculture Department  Chief Economist, Joe Glauber...

“It's not surprising we’ve seen this big increase in fuel oil, in gasoline prices, over the last several months. That means higher hog prices, higher beef prices and that’s where it translates at the retail level.”

Agriculture officials say wheat prices are also going up affecting cereal and bakery products.

Cold temperatures effect the availability of certain vegetables and fruits.  International demand effects supply.

Corn prices, too are rising very fast. Much higher than last year, and that’s corn for animal feed, putting pressure on producers to cut production.

Ag Department Outlook Board Chairman, Jerry Bange,  says producers cut herd sizes in 2008 along with the big surge in energy prices at that time accounting for the current shortage.

“Cattle inventories in this country are at a very, very, low level- numbers we haven’t seen in recent years. Certainly the producers have not been talking about doing any significant expansion of any sort and were looking at pretty tight supplies”

Those tight supplies mean higher prices.  Bange says whole sale prices for beef could be 10 percent higher this year.

The U-S-D-A will release forecast inflation numbers next week.